


a shallow river

by miscellanium



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Asphyxiation, Berserk Yuya, Face Punching, Face Slapping, Fear Play, Hair-pulling, M/M, Manhandling, Minor Injuries, Nosebleed, Self-Esteem Issues, Situational Humiliation, Vomiting, Wetting, i wrote this when i didnt feel good can you tell
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 08:36:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,207
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4953592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miscellanium/pseuds/miscellanium
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is not Yuuya. This is something pretending to be Yuuya, wearing his skin, using his feet to follow quick and his fingers to hold Sawatari tight by the throat. </p><p>[alternate reality splitting off from episodes 45-46 where it's shingo who shows up first, not gongenzaka or mieru.]</p>
            </blockquote>





	a shallow river

The day of the Maiami Championship battle royale is clear and hot, all dry air and bright sun and an insult to Sawatari Shingo. The Wonder Quartet Field activating lifts his spirits a little after being booted from the tournament right at the beginning because at least now in parts of the city the weather is terrible. But then the camera feeds start being taken down and he can't see how his rival Sakaki Yuuya is doing. This can only mean Akaba Reiji is having problems with something and it's a perfect opportunity to get himself back in there, back with Yuuya.

Before the camera feed was cut Yuuya had been in the Ancient Ruins area, and before Akaba sends Sawatari out he can see over their shoulder a familiar mop of hair against old stone. Yuuya is still there, or nearby, he's sure of it. The whole city's supposed to be Action Fields now but the map Akaba let him see showed that the fields were smaller than they looked; it's not far or long to run.

Dress shoes skidding on the scree of crumbling brick, Sawatari arrives in time to see Yuuya slaughtering a group of men in unfamiliar blue uniforms. It's only a duel, of course, their life points rolling down to zero but their bodies intact, yet there's something cold and sharp in the force of that final attack. What was it that guy had said, the one who'd barged into his warehouse? Dueling like a blade or a bullet. But Yuuya's always talking about dueling with smiles and this cannot be it.

When Yuuya turns away from the losers he has a smile, yes, lips pulled back and teeth bared and now Sawatari's sure something is wrong. He's probably just caught up in his feelings, carried away by the thrill of the fight. All that has to be done is shake him out of it and they can take on the Obelisk Force together.

"Hey, Sakaki Yuuya!"

Yuuya looks at him, moving his head but not his body, and presses his lips tight together. Sawatari steps forward, hands raised, and Yuuya sneers before bolting towards the Jungle area, sneakers slapping loud as a concrete column crumbles and collapses behind him.

Even if Sawatari doesn't have time for childish games like this he has no choice but to follow, Akaba's offer of a revival match hanging in front of him, and so he heads into the jungle.

He's barely crossed the border between territories, sun-hot stone suddenly overtaken by rich black soil, when something grabs him by the collar and he's yanked backwards, choking. Lifted, feet dangling, he's thrown on his ass under a tree near a stream, the bark connecting rough with his scalp. Rubbing his head and looking up with a wince, at first he figures he must be hallucinating from the hit but when Yuuya walks over and drops down to grab the front of his shirt there's no doubt.

Voice low and strange, Yuuya says, "Why did you follow me? Are you with them?" It's as though he's someone else.

"Snap out of it, Yuuya." Sawatari reaches for Yuuya's pendulum necklace, dangling between them with a faint glow, and slaps it up to hit him on the chin. It's a playful gesture, meant both to remind and startle, and Yuuya's answer is to hit Sawatari across the face with an open hand.

Before Sawatari can recover, touching his cheek in surprise, Yuuya shoves him up against the tree, thumping his head yet again so a dull ache starts circling his skull and nausea rises to sit in the back of his throat. He's not afraid, he's not, but Yuuya's looking at him with those red red eyes and he doesn't know what to do.

"Anyone who stands in my way is an enemy," says Yuuya, barely audible. Sawatari puts a hand on Yuuya's wrist because maybe here is a crack he can widen, and Yuuya tears him off with his free hand and punches him and his head's throbbing and he's going crosseyed and he can taste blood and he can't swallow and he's heaving—

Sawatari throws up into his lap, gagging and coughing, the sour taste of it sharpening his focus. Some gets on Yuuya's wrist so he lets go of Sawatari's shirt to wipe himself clean on it and the now-damp dark cotton sticks to their skin.

Humiliated, Sawatari pushes himself to his feet and backs away. It's difficult to ignore what's dripping down the front of his trousers and normally he'd be throwing a fit, trying to divert attention by insisting on recompense, but this time fear is spreading electric through him because this is not Yuuya. This is something pretending to be Yuuya, wearing his skin, using his feet to follow quick and his fingers to hold Sawatari tight by the throat. From the thumb jammed under the corner of his jaw and the forearm against his chest Sawatari can feel Yuuya's pulse beat a double rhythm, as though he has two hearts.

"Sakaki Yuuya, come on," Sawatari grits out. "I'm your rival—and your friend now, aren't I?" When there is no response he swallows the hurt and says, "What about your other friends, what would they think? Hiiragi Yuzu or Gongenzaka Noboru?" Nothing. He casts about for more names. "Shiun'in Sora?"

This is a mistake.

The grip tightens, fingernails digging into the soft skin over Sawatari's carotid, then with a fierce swing of his arm Yuuya slams him down to the ground hard enough to send him rolling, gravel scraping his palms bloody and crushed grass streaking his face. But with his nerves singing Sawatari can feel no pain; the rush of confusion and, yes, terror overrides even the lingering nausea so when a foot lands on the small of his back, pinning him face down in the dirt, all he can think of is how it'll be tough to get these stains out of his jacket and how thankful he is to not be wearing his tie because it'd be so easy for Yuuya to grab that and pull it tight around his neck, pull him close—

Yuuya sits heavy on him and something about this warm weight, something about Yuuya so near to him—Sawatari's face goes hot as he realizes he's getting turned on, squeezing his thighs together to try and discreetly rub at his clit and maybe make his body calm down. It's an adrenaline reaction, that's all, he's read about this, yet Yuuya's sitting on his ass and there's no ignoring the way it feels. Then Yuuya's got a fistful of his hair and is yanking his head back, leaning forward to whisper into his ear, and the faint brush of lips against skin makes his hips buck and he tries to bite back a gasp but when he registers what Yuuya said he can't hold it in.

"I could break your neck."

It's true. Sawatari's seen how ruthless this not-Yuuya is and felt the unreal strength in those hands and it finally sinks in just how out of his element he is here. He's not ready to die but the grip on his hair is white-knuckle tight and his neck is starting to hurt and the angle's making it hard to breathe and god, he's _afraid_ —

He closes his eyes, praying the tears won't slip down his face, as something spreads warm and slick between his thighs, wetting his crotch. He knows what it is but doesn't want to name it, not when his trousers are already caked with vomit and dirt and he's kind of aroused despite himself. Yuuya lets go and moves away; it's because Sawatari hasn't put up a fight, he tells himself, not because anything was noticeable, but as he pulls his knees in to try and get up Yuuya kicks him in the side and he goes flying into the water.

The river is shallow and cold, water running fast over his raw cuts and dragging on his clothes, and the white-hot sharpness in his ribs starts to go numb before Yuuya's on him again holding him down with one foot on his neck and the other shoved up against his side. That bruise is going to be spectacular—if he survives this. Of course he'll survive this, he can't drown in virtual water, but it's easy to forget that this is Solid Vision and not real because he's face down in a river with water in his nose, his mouth, his lungs— He almost wants to throw up again from the pain clawing its way across his chest but he'd have to inhale and that'd mean swallowing water, choking, drowning—

Sawatari can't tell if Yuuya's saying anything above him because the river is loud in his ears; it's not deep enough to cover him but it's enough to suffocate him. He can't stay like this, they can't stay like this, not when the real Yuuya is a star he's still trying to catch, and so as soon as it feels like Yuuya's balance is shifting Sawatari pushes himself up to send him tumbling backwards into the river.

Yuuya sits and shakes the water out of his hair, expressionless and pupils dilated like he's walking in the dark. Desperate now, coughing the river out of his throat, Sawatari turns on his duel disk.

Counting on the vivid green light to help jolt Yuuya's memory, Sawatari says, "Don't you remember how the audience cheered for us? How you had so much fun you laughed even when I almost had you finished? Don't you want to do that again?" He's wet and filthy all down his front and his nose is still bleeding and his scraped palms hurt but Yuuya's frowning now, the first sign of familiar emotion, so he stays in the stream with his soggy shoes and Yuuya staring up at him.

"You only won that time because of luck, y'know. If we'd each grabbed the other card it would've been me. But that's okay," he says, watching his friend's face carefully. "I forgive you for what you've done."

It's the words that matter here, not the feelings. Those can come later.

Putting his head in his hands, Yuuya takes a deep breath and _screams_ like something's being ripped out of him. All Sawatari can do is stand there and listen to him until he goes hoarse, until he starts sniffling quietly instead with his face still hidden and his shoulders shaking.

After a moment, Sawatari holds out his hand. "C'mon, Sakaki Yuuya. Let me see that smile."

This time it's really Yuuya looking at him, those eyes bright once more with tears, yes, but also the clear-hearted love that pulled him out of his own darkness. Yuuya takes Sawatari's hand and lets himself be led out of the water to the shore. They are both shaky-legged and sweaty but there's a feeling of having won something, and when Sawatari lets himself squeeze Yuuya's hand the small smile he gets in return is enough. 

"You all right, or should—"

"What am I doing here? I was in the Ancient Ruins area. Where's Sora?"

Wiping his wet bangs off his forehead, Sawatari shrugs. "I don't know where he is. Those Obelisk Force guys hit you pretty hard, didn't they?" This is the least he can do after being forgiven for so much.

Just then a high-pitched voice bursts through the trees: "There he is! Just where my crystal ball said he would be!" It belongs to a small girl with big hair who has Gongenzaka Noboru in tow. She glares at Sawatari and he realizes he's still holding onto Yuuya so he lets go fast and sticks his hands in his pockets.

"I can take it from here," says Gongenzaka, looking over Sawatari with something like sympathy in his eyes. He frowns like he wants to ask what Sawatari's doing here, duel disk on and all, after having been eliminated from the tournament but a loud whuddering rises above them, overwhelming any chance at further conversation. There's a helicopter hovering with the Leo Corporation logo emblazoned on its belly and when a ladder drops there's no question who it's for. 

Gongenzaka takes Yuuya by the shoulder, gently guiding him away (where? Sawatari wants to ask, but the hum of the helicopter blades is like drums in his head) and raising a hand in farewell. The girl follows them, yelling something about needing to take a look inside because what she observed was inconclusive, and Sawatari's stomach lurches again. He's not surprised by the possibility of Akaba monitoring him, anticipating an outcome like this; the condescension rankles but he'll take what he's given. But had Gongenzaka and that girl been doing the same? He shoves the idea down and jumps onto the ladder, ignoring the shooting pain in his side and looking for Yuuya among the trees as he rises.

Once he's cleaned up, Sawatari vows, he'll head back out to really fight the Obelisk Force and stop this invasion since the top eight of the Youth Division couldn't. He'll protect Yuuya from the coming darkness and make everybody proud of him. He will.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading. please leave kudos and/or comments if you can, they mean a lot to me


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